Department of Healthhttp://kunm.org
enState To Launch Child Vaccine Programhttp://kunm.org/post/state-launch-child-vaccine-program
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">On Monday, the governor announced a two-week program offering free vaccinations to children before school starts.</span></p><p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">&nbsp;</span><span style="line-height: 1.5;">The <a href="http://nmhealth.org/">Department of Health</a> will run the program with money from the state’s general fund to cover vaccinations for uninsured children.</span></p><p>Mon, 27 Jul 2015 23:30:22 +0000Ed Williams63798 at http://kunm.orgState To Launch Child Vaccine ProgramCould Unspent Funds Shorten Wait List For Disability Services? http://kunm.org/post/could-unspent-funds-shorten-wait-list-disability-services
<p></p><p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">New Mexico’s auditor identified more than $</span><a href="http://www.saonm.org/government_accountability_office" style="line-height: 1.5;">4.5 billion in unspent state funds</a><span style="line-height: 1.5;"> earlier this year. Now a national agency wants to see some of that money go to a program for people with disabilities.</span></p><p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">It’s known as the DD Waiver, and it’s a program that helps folks with developmental disabilities get services. But the waiting list is up to </span><a href="http://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/legislature/underfunded-disability-program-leaves-families-waiting-years-for-aid/article_4e656b42-29ea-56b3-b03b-fcf6bf859f0e.html" style="line-height: 1.5;">10 years long</a><span style="line-height: 1.5;">.</span></p><p>Mon, 06 Jul 2015 21:59:56 +0000Marisa Demarco62909 at http://kunm.orgCould Unspent Funds Shorten Wait List For Disability Services? Teen Birth Rate Falls 48 Percent In N.M.http://kunm.org/post/teen-birth-rate-falls-48-percent-nm
<p></p><p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">May is Teen Pregnancy Awareness Month, and since 2000 our state has seen its teen birth rate fall nearly 50 percent for teens age 15 to 17.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">A lot of factors contribute to the drop in teenage parenthood in New Mexico, like expanded access through Medicaid and improvement in birth control.</span></p>Tue, 12 May 2015 23:45:22 +0000Marisa Demarco60655 at http://kunm.orgTeen Birth Rate Falls 48 Percent In N.M.Round Two For Flu In New Mexicohttp://kunm.org/post/round-two-flu-new-mexico
<p></p><p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">The weather’s warming up, but flu season’s not quite over.&nbsp;Even if you already had the flu this season, if you feel ill, you could have it again. A second virus is making its way around New Mexico.&nbsp;</span></p>Wed, 01 Apr 2015 18:07:35 +0000Marisa Demarco58843 at http://kunm.orgRound Two For Flu In New MexicoPublic Health In The 2015 Sessionhttp://kunm.org/post/public-health-2015-session
<p></p><p></p><p><strong style="line-height: 1.5;">Psychiatric Meds In School—PASSED</strong></p>Wed, 25 Mar 2015 01:40:06 +0000Marisa Demarco, Ed Williams & Rita Daniels58533 at http://kunm.orgPublic Health In The 2015 Session5 Deaths From Flu In New Mexicohttp://kunm.org/post/5-deaths-flu-new-mexico
<p>Five New Mexicans&nbsp; have died so far this year from flu related illnesses, ranging in age from 29 to 92. The <a href="http://nmhealth.org/news/alert/2015/1/?view=210">announcement</a> from the state Department of Health comes as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention <a href="http://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/summary.htm">are warning </a>of epidemic levels of flu activity nationally.&nbsp;</p>Tue, 13 Jan 2015 23:17:03 +0000Ed Williams55461 at http://kunm.org5 Deaths From Flu In New MexicoOverdose-Reversing Drug Saves Hundreds In N.M.http://kunm.org/post/overdose-reversing-drug-saves-hundreds-nm
<p></p><p>A drug called naloxone reversed more than 700 overdoses in New Mexico last year. But hurdles remain for making the drug more widely available.&nbsp;</p><p>Naloxone—brand name Narcan—can be prescribed by pharmacists, not just doctors, and Medicaid covers the cost. In 2014, those big policy changes resulted in a spike of overdose reversals.&nbsp;</p>Mon, 12 Jan 2015 23:20:49 +0000Marisa Demarco55417 at http://kunm.orgOverdose-Reversing Drug Saves Hundreds In N.M.Flu Season Is Back: Time For Shots!http://kunm.org/post/flu-season-back-time-shots
<p>There’s been so much media attention focused on the Ebola crisis in West Africa and whether the healthcare system in the U.S. is <a href="http://www.abqjournal.com/482491/news/nm-hospitals-scramble-to-be-ready-for-ebola.html">ready for cases here</a>, it’s easy to forget that the U.S. flu season has begun. Each year thousands of people in the U.S. die from the flu, tens of thousands in bad years. Last year there were <a href="http://nmhealth.org/publication/view/data/234/">34 flu-related deaths in New Mexico</a>.</p>Mon, 20 Oct 2014 21:37:41 +0000Arianna Sena51964 at http://kunm.orgFlu Season Is Back: Time For Shots!Gov. Martinez Orders Ebola Preparedness Planhttp://kunm.org/post/gov-martinez-orders-ebola-preparedness-plan
<p style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, Geneva; font-size: 15px; line-height: 15px;">&nbsp;</p><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, Geneva; font-size: 15px; line-height: 15px;"><p>Gov. Susana Martinez has directed the state Department of Health to coordinate an Ebola preparedness plan in case the disease is diagnosed in any New Mexico patients.</p>Sun, 19 Oct 2014 00:42:59 +0000The Associated Press51915 at http://kunm.orgGov. Martinez Orders Ebola Preparedness PlanNo Signs Of Tuberculosis In Exposed New Mexico Babieshttp://kunm.org/post/no-signs-tuberculosis-exposed-new-mexico-babies
<p>New Mexico health officials have screened 56 babies for tuberculosis since an El Paso hospital worker tested positive for the potentially lethal respiratory infection last summer. Now, state health officials say none of the babies living here appear to have contracted the disease.</p><p></p>Thu, 16 Oct 2014 22:14:31 +0000Ed Williams51836 at http://kunm.orgNo Signs Of Tuberculosis In Exposed New Mexico BabiesReclassification Of Pain Meds Could Prevent Overdoseshttp://kunm.org/post/reclassification-pain-meds-could-prevent-overdoses
<p>The federal government has tightened restrictions on prescription hydrocodone combo drugs to try to reduce overdoses. That could be good news for New Mexico, which has the second highest opioid overdose rate in the nation, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.</p><p></p><p>The Drug Enforcement Agenct now considers the highly addictive pain medication a Schedule II drug alongside oxycodone and methamphetamine.</p><p></p>Mon, 13 Oct 2014 23:37:53 +0000Arianna Sena51718 at http://kunm.orgReclassification Of Pain Meds Could Prevent OverdosesNew Mexico Babies Exposed To Tuberculosis At El Paso Hospitalhttp://kunm.org/post/new-mexico-babies-exposed-tuberculosis-el-paso-hospital
<p>The <a href="http://nmhealth.org/">New Mexico Health Department</a>&nbsp;is screening babies for tuberculosis in Doña Ana County this week.&nbsp;</p><p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">Health Department officials in Texas and New Mexico say as many as 750 newborns might have been exposed to tuberculosis at <a href="http://www.sphn-pmh.com/en-US/Pages/default.aspx">Providence Memorial Hospital</a>’s nursery unit in El Paso. Over 50 of those babies are thought to live in southern New Mexico.</span></p><p></p>Wed, 24 Sep 2014 22:33:17 +0000Ed Williams51019 at http://kunm.orgNew Mexico Babies Exposed To Tuberculosis At El Paso HospitalMothers Fight Stigma Of Drug Addictionhttp://kunm.org/post/mothers-fight-stigma-drug-addiction
<p></p><p>The number of babies born addicted to drugs has risen sharply over the last decade or so in New Mexico. KUNM’s Public Health reporter Marisa Demarco brings us this story of how stigma surrounding addiction and pregnancy is contributing to the increase.</p>Thu, 28 Aug 2014 15:36:42 +0000Marisa Demarco49876 at http://kunm.orgMothers Fight Stigma Of Drug AddictionMedical Cannabis Board Rejects Rule Changeshttp://kunm.org/post/medical-cannabis-board-rejects-rule-changes
<p style="margin-bottom: 0px; line-height: normal; font-family: Helvetica;">&nbsp;</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">The board that oversees New Mexico's medical marijuana program this week unanimously rejected rule changes proposed by the state Department of Health.&nbsp;</span></p>Thu, 28 Aug 2014 02:41:01 +0000Rita Daniels49897 at http://kunm.orgMedical Cannabis Board Rejects Rule ChangesInfant Mortality Rate Evens Outhttp://kunm.org/post/infant-mortality-rate-evens-out
<p></p><p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">New Mexico’s infant mortality rate fell 22 percent between 2012 and 2013, from 6.9 infant deaths per 1000 births to 5.4 in 2013,&nbsp;</span><a href="http://nmhealth.org/news/information/2014/8/?view=127" style="line-height: 1.5;">according to the state Department of Health</a><span style="line-height: 1.5;">.&nbsp;</span></p><p>That might sound like a big drop, but that’s because the numbers for 2012 were abnormally high.</p>Wed, 27 Aug 2014 22:13:35 +0000Ed Williams49930 at http://kunm.orgInfant Mortality Rate Evens OutUNMH Patient Tested For Ebolahttp://kunm.org/post/unmh-patient-tested-ebola
<p></p><p>The Department of Health sent clinical samples to the CDC today to make sure a New Mexico patient doesn’t have the Ebola virus.&nbsp;</p><p><span style="line-height: 1.5;">A 30-year-old woman in Albuquerque went to the hospital this weekend with a sore throat, headache, muscle aches and a fever after returning from a trip to West Africa, where an Ebola epidemic this year has killed more than 1,000 people.</span></p><p></p>Mon, 18 Aug 2014 22:26:30 +0000Marisa Demarco49556 at http://kunm.orgUNMH Patient Tested For EbolaHeavy Rains Bring Worries Of West Nile Virus http://kunm.org/post/heavy-rains-bring-worries-west-nile-virus
<p>With heavy rainfall still drenching parts of the Southwest, health officials are warning that mosquito populations could increase, and more mosquitoes could mean more West Nile Virus.</p>Thu, 19 Sep 2013 22:33:37 +0000Tristan Ahtone35219 at http://kunm.orgHeavy Rains Bring Worries Of West Nile Virus Southwest Plague Cases Help High US Ranking For Bubonic Infections http://kunm.org/post/southwest-plague-cases-help-high-us-ranking-bubonic-infections
<p>A <a href="http://www.ajtmh.org/content/early/2013/08/22/ajtmh.13-0191.abstract" target="target_blank">new survey</a> ranks the United States 11th in the number of reported plague cases around the world. Of the cases found in the U.S. over the last decade, most infections were acquired in the Southwest.</p>Wed, 18 Sep 2013 23:59:44 +0000Tristan Ahtone35174 at http://kunm.orgSouthwest Plague Cases Help High US Ranking For Bubonic Infections Number Of Overdose Deaths Among Women Continue To Climb http://kunm.org/post/number-overdose-deaths-among-women-continue-climb
<p><a href="http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6226a3.htm?s_cid=mm6226a3_w#fig1" target="target_blank">New data</a> from the <a href="http://www.cdc.gov/" target="target_blank">Centers For Disease Control</a> conclude that nationally, overdose deaths among women have been on the rise since 1999; and that since 2007, more women have died from overdoses than motor vehicle-related injuries.</p><p>However, officials in New Mexico say those trends are nothing new in the state.</p>Wed, 03 Jul 2013 21:05:43 +0000Tristan Ahtone31655 at http://kunm.orgNumber Of Overdose Deaths Among Women Continue To Climb